No slowing Tang down despite qualifying setback

SINGAPORE – For more than an hour, Singapore racer Andrew Tang and two members of his Porsche China Junior team sat in the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) hospitality suite and keenly reviewed the 21-year-old’s performance at Saturday’s qualifying session at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.

With two laptops open in front of them, the trio pored over data as they discussed what went right and wrong for Tang during the session, while also formulating their approach for Sunday’s (Sept 18) race.

After all, strategy could play an especially key role in how well the PCCA rookie performs in the race after he finished fifth in qualifying with a best-lap time of 2mins 19.182s. Kamlung Racing’s Maxime Jousse, who is currently top of the drivers’ standings, claimed pole with a time of 2mins 17.913s.

The qualifying result proved to be a source for disappointment for Tang – driving on the Marina Bay circuit for only the second time – especially since he had initially started the session with a series of strong laps.

But disaster struck on the sixth lap after an error led to him hitting the wall of the track. As a result, he was unable to push his car harder for the remainder of the session and he eventually called it a day after the ninth lap.

Reflecting on his display during qualifying, a downcast Tang told TODAY: “It was a bit of a disappointment because right until the crash, I felt that I was driving quite well. Everything went according to plan on the first set (of tires) although it still wasn't the perfect run. But it wasn’t too bad and we were running fourth and quite close to the first.

“We were planning to push on using the second set of tires and it was going well. Even now when looking at the data, it showed that I was going strong. I think I was quickest on the first sector, but then I made a mistake on the second sector when I touched the wall.

“But the main thing is that I came out with the car not too badly damaged. It'll be completely fixed for tomorrow. This is a learning experience for me and I’ve just got to keep working and improving.”

Tang is currently third in the PCCA championship on 132 points and is just six off Jousse. With just four more races – including this Sunday’s Singapore leg – left to the end of the season, Tang knows time is running out for him to rack up points as he continues to chase down the pace-setting Frenchman.

It is why Tang has not given up hope on clinching top spot on the podium in the Singapore race just yet.

Despite it being hard for drivers to overtake on the notoriously challenging Marina Bay circuit, the former St Joseph's Institution International student believes he will be able to make up ground on Sunday, and is counting on a strong start to do so.

“It is a tough track to pass on, so how I do at the start is crucial,” explained Tang. “But I've had good starts all season and I'm going to work to do the same this time as well. Hopefully, I’ll be able to improve my position.

“There are four cars in front of me, which isn’t all that many, but it’s still not going to be easy. We know we’ve got good pace, so I’ll just go out there and push my hardest and see what will happen.

“Nonetheless, we still have the championship at the back of our minds, and at this point, points are very important. So I won’t be attempting anything too risky. We still have three more races in Malaysia and Shanghai to go, and I think I’ll be able to make up ground there as well.”